Carrie Murray Nature Center

Such a great place to stop by when hiking at Leaken Park. They have animals, and indoor play area for kids, binoculars and nature guides to check out. Bathrooms and water fountain.

As a lover of nature centers, I can't recommend this one enough. They have awesome educational events, binoculars and other gear that can be borrowed, and are surrounded by beautiful trails with lots of birds. They have an aviary for rescued birds of prey like hawks, a bald eagle, and a turkey vulture. I wanted to learn more about the turkey vulture as I know they're social and he was alone. I emailed Kirby Pitchford, the Lead Animal Care Naturalist to ask. He responded the same day with a detailed email explaining that the bird doesn't like other turkey vultures, and blew me away with information on the level of care the animals receive. They have an enrichment room, and allow the turkey vulture, who doesn't like to be touched, to choose if he goes to the playroom and even walks himself down the hallway. He was also trained to enter his crate independently for vet appointments to minimize stress. I was grateful to learn that birds are all rescues who couldn't survive on their own and have an amazing quality of life. He also invited me to come to the nature center so he can show me around and teach me more about the animals. This is a beautiful center full of helpful information and caring staff.

I took my baby to the story time on this beautiful day. We stretched out on a blanket in the grass, and our storyteller Julia picked out some beautiful books and had a nature-based craft for us to do. Julia was so passionate and knowledgeable about the park, I loved getting to learn about this great space. Shout out to Binks, who gave us a tour and was so excited for the programming at the center.

I feel like I stumbled upon one of those charming gems that makes the whole city shine!

My family and I had a great time. My mother used a walker so it is sometimes tough to do outdoor park activities. We were able to use the wheelchair to the nature center and have a short walk to see the birds. She had a lot of fun. They have a nice room with AC and we were able to eat lunch there after our mini hike.

Coming from New Hampshire, we didn't know what to expect, but both the nature center and the trails were friendly and quiet places to learn about local wildlife. The staffer (I'm sorry I didn't get her name!) answered our many questions about the box turtles and corn snake inside the nature center, and after we had checked them out (as well as the tarantula, hawk and owl), we walked a couple of miles on the trails directly behind the center. I noticed that there are nature guides, backpacks and other viewing aids for loan inside the nature center, as well as sculptures and handmade forest shelters outside that kids would enjoy. A great way to spend an afternoon in the city!

Didn’t go in for the nature center the last trip. But we were outside participating in the learn to ride program with Baltimore city recreation and parks.

The nature center was not open when we went. It is currently open very limited hours. We knew there were trails here, but there was no map anywhere that we saw, so we just walked around until we found a trail. It would have been nice to know how long it was, or if it looped before we started. We hiked the wetlands trail. It was a good hike, probably about 1 1/2 miles to the end and back, with lots of hills. It was a pretty clear path, though in a few spots, the thorny brush needs to be cut back. Overall, it was a pretty hike through the woods. I am curious to find additional trails the next time we go. I would like to get there when the nature center is open to see if there is a map. There is a small aviary behind 2 fences. There is a turkey vulture, 2 red tailed hawks, and an owl. It was a little hard to see the birds through the fences. In all, it is a good place to hike. I will return and explore more. It did appear that there was an outhouse in front of the nature center, but there were no indoor facilities since inside was closed.